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Euphonium player Steven Mead with musical majesty and virtuosic brass

Euphonium player Steven Mead reveals familiar and unfamiliar works in a new light, from a magnificent and little-heard piece by Richard Strauss, to a tango by Piazzolla.

Steven Mead is a euphonium player in brass bands and orchestras across the world, as well as a soloist and teacher. Today, he shares some recordings which celebrate the wonderful world of brass music. From Vladimir Cosma’s Euphonium Concerto which was informed by Steven’s own playing, to trumpeter Wynton Marsalis’s seemingly endless breath, Richard Strauss’s 'brass-tastic' Festive Music for the City of Vienna, and a low brass ensemble which is pushed to its limits…

Steven also explains why the story of pianist Vladimir Horowitz returning from a performing hiatus of 12 years left him awestruck, and reveals one of his biggest vocal inspirations: Freddy Mercury.

A series in which each week a musician explores a selection of music - from the inside.

A Tandem Production for ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 3

1 hour, 56 minutes

Music Played

  • Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka

    Ruslan and Ludmila (Overture)

    Ensemble: British Tuba Quartet.
    • POLYPHONIC.
  • FrΓ©dΓ©ric Chopin

    Mazurka in C Sharp Minor, Op. 30 No. 4

    Performer: Vladimir Horowitz.
    • SONY.
  • NiccolΓ² Paganini

    Moto perpetuo, Op. 11, MS 72

    Performer: Wynton Marsalis. Ensemble: Eastman Wind Ensemble. Conductor: Donald Hunsberger.
    • SONY.
  • Jean Sibelius

    Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 43 (I. Allegretto)

    Orchestra: Berliner Philharmoniker. Conductor: Sir Simon Rattle.
    • BERLINER PHILHARMONIKER.
  • Astor Piazzolla

    Cafe 1930

    Performer: Yo‐Yo Ma. Performer: NΓ©stor Marconi. Director: Jorge Calandrelli.
    • SONY.
  • Queen

    You're My Best Friend

    • ISLAND RECORDS.
  • Vladimir Cosma

    Euphonium Concerto (III. Giocoso)

    Ensemble: Fairey Band. Conductor: Howard Snell.
    • POLYPHONIC.
  • Gaetano Donizetti

    'Una furtiva lagrima' (L'elisir d'amore, Act 2)

    Singer: Luciano Pavarotti. Orchestra: Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. Conductor: James Levine.
    • DG.
  • Richard Strauss

    Festive Music for the City of Vienna

    Ensemble: Onyx Brass. Ensemble: Septura.
    • CHANDOS.
  • Gabriel FaurΓ©

    Requiem, Op.48 (VIII. In Paradisum)

    Performer: Christophe Henry. Choir: Accentus Chamber Choir. Choir: Maitrise de Paris. Ensemble: Orchestre national de France. Conductor: Laurence Equilbey.
    • NAIVE.
  • Allan Botschinsky

    October Sunshine

    Performer: Allan Botschinsky. Performer: Derek Watkins. Performer: Bart van Lier. Performer: Erik van Lier.
    • MA MUSIC.
  • Johann Sebastian Bach

    St Matthew Passion (I. Kommt, ihr TΓΆchter, helft mir klagen)

    Choir: London Oratory Junior Choir. Choir: Monteverdi Choir. Orchestra: English Baroque Soloists. Conductor: Sir John Eliot Gardiner.
    • DG.
  • Alfred Reed

    Russian Christmas Music

    Ensemble: Brass Band of Battle Creek.
    • BΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ.
  • Felix Mendelssohn

    Violin Concerto in E minor (I. Allegro)

    Performer: Nicola Benedetti. Orchestra: Academy of St Martin in the Fields. Conductor: James McMillan.
    • DECCA.
  • Sam Pilafian

    When You're Smiling

    • TELARC.

Broadcast

  • Sat 24 Feb 2024 13:00

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